


Revisionist History, Volume Three

by rae_marie



Series: Echoes In the Universe [3]
Category: Doctor Who (Big Finish Audio)
Genre: Gen, blair kenneth verse, it's just that it's kinda horrifying especially if you think about it too hard, the violence isn't that bad but it's still kinda intense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-26
Updated: 2018-09-28
Packaged: 2019-08-02 14:25:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 18,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16306922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rae_marie/pseuds/rae_marie
Summary: Blair and the Master are still looking for the Taft Machine, but what would the consequences be if they reached that goal?





	1. Episode One

**Author's Note:**

> This is the last installment in the Revisionist History trilogy. Time & Tide will be it's sequel, and will be coming soon. :)

There was a crash, and a startled yelp down the hall. The Master strode quickly in the direction of the sound. 

'Blair?'

'I'm fine.' 

He turned the corner, and she was getting up; dusting herself off. There was a disarrayed pile of metal shelves on the floor. 

'It's not on  _ this  _ shelf, anyway,' she said. She grinned. 'I guess we'll just have to try another!'

'Perhaps we should stay together after all, Blair; the TARDIS is vast, and one could easily become forever lost in it.' Blair nodded. 

'If you say so.' He took her hand, and they walked on down the corridor together. 

'Does it do this reconfiguring often, then?' she asked after a while. 

'Not often, no;' the Master said, 'however this appears to be one of the less extreme reconfigurations. At least she hasn't changed her colour this time.' Blair frowned.

'Yeah - when will it go all ebony?' 

That must have been the colour of his future self's TARDIS. 'I am not sure you should be giving me that much detail,' he said, then paused. He smiled down at Blair. 'Ebony, you say? How.... _ unconventional _ .' 

Blair snorted. 'Well, that's you to a T, isn't it?' The Master chuckled. 

In a moment, Blair pointed at a doorway. 'Oh - look!' 

They went up to it and looked in. Blair took a map and a pen out of her pocket and noted the room. 'We've got the library, then.' She stuffed them back in her pocket. 'Okay! On we go!' 

They continued on until they came to another shelf. The Master rummaged through its contents, and found a key. 'Excellent!' 

Blair grinned. 'You found it?'

The Master nodded. 'I have found it.' 

'So what does it open?'

'I shall show you, presently. Come along, now.'

They walked through a variety of corridors, and the Master was glad Blair was with him now; she would never be able to find her own way back to the console room alone. 

'Is the TARDIS really,  _ truly _ alive?' Blair asked. 

'Most certainly.' He smiled, proud. 'She is a sentient being, just as you and I are.' 

'So why is she mechanical and electronic as well?' 

'It is hard to say, really,' he replied. 'I suspect that even the High Council back on Gallifrey do not fully comprehend the intricacies and workings of a TARDIS.' 

'Wow....' Blair sounded awed. 'So....does she understand what we're talking about?' 

'Yes.' 

'That is  _ fab _ .' 

They reached a door, and the Master put the key in its lock. 

'Here we are.' 

Blair clapped her hands. 'Ooh - I can't wait I can't wait!'

The Master smiled to himself. 'I never would have guessed.' He opened the door and gestured to the doorway. 'After you, my dear.' 

*****

Blair stepped into the room and gasped. The walls showed all the activity happening outside the TARDIS, in space, and she could see spinning planets, spaceships speeding by, and nebulae stretching out their arms. The Master came over to her side, and they stood in silence for a long time, simply watching. 

*****

As they left the room, Blair was still speechless. She had seen so much on their travels, but nothing quite like this. 

'How can we see through to space?' Blair whispered. 

'It is a perfect projection of what is happening outside. As I said before; the TARDIS is sentient; we are basically seeing what she is seeing.'

Blair smiled as they walked back towards the Console Room. However, they hadn't gotten a metre when the TARDIS shuddered, then jolted. Blair steadied herself. 'What on Earth....'

'This must be investigated,' the Master said, and they started running. As they ran, a bell, somewhere deep in the TARDIS, started tolling ominously. 

*****

They pulled up short in the doorway when they saw the Console Room. Blair squeezed the Master's hand tightly and they looked at each other. Without a word, they closed their eyes.

_ Someone's hijacking the TARDIS! _ Blair thought. She felt a wave of reassurance from the Master.

_ Stay calm, Blair;  _ he thought back,  _ this can be put to rights. I know who it is.  _

Blair heard the Master clear his throat, and opened her eyes to see the intruder staring at them with very wide eyes. His brown curly hair was almost standing on end, and he pulled his scarf tighter around his shoulders; almost nervously. 

'Hello.  _ Doctor _ ,' the Master said. 

'Ah - your TARDIS, is this?' 

'Yes; it  _ is _ my TARDIS, and now you will  _ leave  _ it.' The man grinned. 

'You want me to  _ leave? _ Just when we were having a good conversation? Don't you want to shrink me first - or are you going to do that as I go through the door?' 

The Master frowned. 'I would not recommend going through the door, Doctor; it is the cold vacuum of space outside.' 

'Ah.'

Blair was getting more confused by the second. 'Er....I don't suppose you could introduce me....?' she said. The Doctor looked at her. 

'Oh, hello, there - who are you?' 

'I'm Blair,' she said. 'Who are you?' The Master let go of her hand and started edging around the room towards the shelf where the TCE was charging. 

'Well, I'm the Doctor, and I suppose you've heard all sorts of terrible stories about me....' 

Blair saw the Master frown. 'She knows  _ nothing _ , Doctor -  _ do _ try to keep your mouth shut.' The Doctor studied her. 

'Master....' he said, not taking his gaze off of her, 'I don't know what you're planning, but if it involves hurting an innocent young chi - '

The fizz of the TCE powering up cut the Doctor off. 

'I think that is quite enough of  _ that _ , Doctor. Now. Will you leave my TARDIS  _ immediately _ , via whatever teleport you used to break in, or....' He levelled the TCE at the Doctor, though Blair knew he wouldn't shoot him. The Doctor seemed harmless enough for an intruder, and except for that one time with the Frn, Blair had never known the Master to kill anyone sentient; and that incident had been in defense of baby aliens, anyway. The Doctor must not have known this, though, for he took a quick step back and spread his hands. 

'Ah - well - you see it's not as  _ simple _ as all that!' he said. The Master followed him, his eyes narrowed. 

'Is it, now? And why would that  _ be? _ ' 

'Well, I'm here because of a distress signal,' the Doctor said.

*****

They walked through the TARDIS, the Master walking ahead and scanning the various rooms with the TCE. The Doctor leaned down to Blair. 

'Blair - I would watch my back if I were you,' he whispered. Blair caught her breath. 

'Why?' she whispered back. 

'Well, the Master doesn't have a very good track record when it comes to companions, if you catch my drift.' Blair squinted. 

'I  _ don't  _ catch your drift.' 

'Let's just say, I've never met someone who travelled with him and lived to tell the tale.' 

Blair was confused for a moment, then her eyes widened, and she stepped quickly away. 

'If you want to come with me, there's room in my TARDIS - I'm sure Sarah Jane and you would get along  _ swimmingly! _ ' he said. Blair scowled. She couldn't believe he was even  _ suggesting  _ this. 

' _ No _ .' She scampered over to the Master. He put a hand on her shoulder. 

'Blair, you go on ahead of us,' he said. Blair nodded, and ran off. Right now, she didn't want to be  _ anywhere _ near this  _ Doctor _ intruder,  _ whoever _ he was. 

*****

The Master stopped and turned to face the Doctor. 

'If I overheard you correctly just now, you were trying to frighten Blair into leaving with you,' he said. 'Might I remind you that I am the only one in this room with a weapon?'

'I wasn't trying to frighten her;' the Doctor said, a little too nonchalantly, 'I only wanted to warn her of your - shall we say -  _ murderous tendencies _ .'

The Master frowned. Murderous tendencies indeed. 

'I do not pretend to know the full  _ depths _ of your low opinion of me, Doctor,' he said, 'but I can assure you that Blair Kenneth is the closest friend I have had since - ' He broke off; no use in reliving the old times. He glared at the Doctor. 'I will not have you - or anyone else - attempting to estrange us.' 

The Doctor looked at him with suspicion. He opened his mouth, then frowned, then spoke. 

'Are you deceiving yourself, Master? Or am I actually seeing a small spark of compassion in your hearts?'

The Master could not believe he was going over this all again. 'I  _ have _ compassion, Doctor! Why else would I be trying to stop the Universe from spinning out of control? Why do you never  _ see _ that?'

'Because if you really do love this Universe, you have a rather odd way of showing it.' 

They stared at each other. The Master could not understand why the Doctor insisted on always needling him like this. They used to be  _ friends _ , for goodness sake. Then, the Doctor extended a hand. 

'Master, I know we don't see eye to eye, but I'm not here to kidnap Blair, or foil your plans; I simply heard a distress signal and wanted to help whomever was on the other end of it. Can we put aside our differences and work together this once?'

The Master stared at the Doctor's hand for a minute. He did not know whether he  _ should  _ trust the Doctor or not; this could all be part of some scheme to take over his TARDIS - or perhaps he was lying about Blair and he  _ did _ intend to kidnap her. But no. That was not the Doctor he knew. 

He shook his hand. 

'I suppose so,' he said. 'But no tricks.' 

'Of course not.' 

'Very well, then. Onwards.' 

*****

Blair had stopped outside the library. She could hear the vraw-ing of the TCE's scanner coming closer, and as soon as the Master and the Doctor came into view, it went berserk.

'Must be in here!' she said. 

'A reasonable assumption,' the Master said, and they all went in. 

*****

Inside the library, nothing seemed to have changed. Blair couldn't fathom what was wrong. Maybe this Doctor person really  _ wasn't _ harmless, and was using the distress signal as a trick to get on board. 

The Doctor drew a cylinder from his pocket. Blair backed up quickly, right into the Master, who caught her as she stumbled. Her mind raced.  _ He has a TCE as well!  _ she thought.  _ What if he has no qualms about using it on us?! _

'You are safe, Blair; it is hardly a weapon,' the Master said. Blair let out her breath. 

'Oh, I don't carry weapons;' laughed the Doctor, using the thing to scan the bookshelves. 'they might go off - and  _ then _ where would I be?' Blair half-grinned, still unsure what to make of him. 'It's a sonic screwdriver. Quite handy, really.' He stopped and switched the screwdriver off, staring at a specific shelf. 

'Is there supposed to be a book here?' 

Blair gasped. He was pointing to a gap where her gift from Eliza should be.  _ Moby Dick  _ was missing, too. She felt the Master tense beside her. 

'Yes, there is,' he said. 'Which rather begs the question - where  _ is _ it.' He raised an eyebrow as the Doctor turned around. 

'Don't look at me that way! It could hardly have been me!'

'Oh? I do not recall  _ seeing _ you land in my TARDIS. You could have wandered the corridors for hours before we found you; perhaps that is why the TARDIS decided to reconfigure; as a defense mechanism.' 

The Doctor grinned. 'Oh, I'd  _ hardly _ wander  _ these  _ corridors - they all look the same - '

' _ Doctor _ \- ' 

'Honestly; it wasn't me!'

They all looked at the gap. Blair frowned. 

'I hope we find it soon. That was  _ my _ first edition of  _ Sense & Sensibility _ !'

The Doctor gave her a sympathetic smile. 'We'll find your book, Blair; don't worry.' 

He shuffled a few volumes around, then froze. The Master's eyes widened, and he grabbed Blair's hand and hauled her back. 

'What?! What is it?!' she exclaimed. 

'A  _ bomb _ , Blair. Someone has planted a temporal contact bomb in  _ my TARDIS! _ ' 

The Doctor was trying to do something with his sonic screwdriver. 'Maybe if I can defuse it....' he muttered.

'If you're not precise, Doctor, you will blow us all into so many _ fragments! _ '

'I know....'

Blair's heart was in her throat. She steadied her breathing enough to ask, 'What is it....'

'If he touches it, it will explode - and if he doesn't defuse it, it will wind back the clock on us all!' The Master backed her further away. 'We would be de-aged in seconds, and if it affects the TARDIS, she would disintegrate, and then it won't  _ matter _ how young we've become, because we will be exposed to the raw  _ vacuum! _ ' 

The sonic screwdriver squeaked, and the Doctor spun around. 

'It's no good; we have to move it somewhere it won't affect the TARDIS.' The Master looked exasperated. 

'If we touch it, it will  _ detonate _ \- that is why it is called a  _ contact _ bomb - wait - '

Blair looked up at him, holding her breath. He seemed to be thinking for a minute, then his grip tightened on her hand. 

'Quickly! To the Console Room!  _ Now! _ ' 

They all sprinted for the door. 

*****

By the time they got into the Console Room, the bell had started tolling again; Blair figured it must be some sort of alarm system. The Master released her hand and dashed over to the console, and Blair joined him as he started programming the controls. 

'It cannot be helped. I am going to partition off that one corner of the Library, and then - '

The Doctor flew over. 'Wait - no - you can't - ' He reached for the controls, but the Master pushed his hands aside and slid a lever all the way up. The TARDIS shuddered, and then there was an explosion. 

The Master let go of the controls and sighed. 'The danger is over now.' 

Blair noticed the Doctor staring at the Master in what could only be described as pure horror. The Master frowned. 

'Doctor - '

'You  _ monster _ ,' he whispered. 

Blair's jaw dropped. She backed up closer to the Master. 

'How  _ dare _ you!' she shouted. 'Look - I don't know  _ what _ gripe you have with the Master, but you can't go calling him a  _ monster! _ ' She felt a hand on her shoulder. 

'Blair. I am able to manage this.' 

She fell silent, but still scowled at the Doctor. 

'Doctor,' the Master said, 'I just saved all of our lives; surely you cannot take issue with that.' 

'How many people did you just snuff out when you jettisoned the bomb into that solar system, eh!? We were in quite the cluster of population! Did it even cross your mind?!' 

Blair frowned deeper. Of  _ course _ it had crossed his mind - did he think the Master was heartless or something? The Master switched on the scanner, studied it for a moment, then looked at the Doctor pointedly. 

'No one was killed, Doctor, so all of your indignation just went to waste. Why not go back to your TARDIS now that you've done your damage?' 

The Doctor frowned, then smiled sadly at Blair. 'Look after yourself, Blair.' he said. He looked at the Master. 'You're still the same old you. Apparently changing your look hasn't changed your  _ out _ look. Goodbye.'

He tugged back his cuff, pressed a button on a bracelet, and vanished. Blair stared. She hadn't known someone could just  _ teleport _ into the TARDIS. She didn't really like that. 

'Do not worry; the Doctor is a technical genius; not everyone can simply materialise here in that manner,' the Master said; obviously, he'd picked up on her fear. She looked at him. 

'What about the distress signal?' 

'It was attached to the bomb. Whoever planted it must have thought it the perfect trap. I wonder....' He pulled the demat lever and stared up at the time rotors for a while. 

'I would suppose it was planted by whoever stole your book; a rather dramatic attempt to destroy the evidence. No one would want the Time Lords to discover they had been breaking into TARDISes and stealing historically relevant books.' 

'But who did it?' she asked. Then a thought came to her. 'Was it the Monk?' The idea made her shudder, but she knew they had to consider everything. 

'I do not know. It is very possible, but something tells me it is not him.'  

Blair stared at the Master for a moment, then frowned. She could feel he was angry about something; probably their intruder.

'Master....why did that man - the Doctor - why was he so against you? Why did he accuse you of being a monster? I mean, I know I've seen a few things, like the scientist Frn on Home, or Lieutenant Zeta, or even the screaming canary of Madagascar, but....a  _ monster? _ ' 

The Master sighed. 'Do you remember when we were on Octathorpe, I told you of a friend who had wanted to visit, but we never had the chance?' 

Blair thought for a minute. That was ringing some bells. 'Yes....'

'That was the Doctor.' 

Blair stared. 

'We were very close friends, once. We....we simply  _ aren't  _ anymore.' 

'But why not?'

The Master sighed again. 'It matters not. What I am trying to say is that we often do not see eye-to-eye.  _ Especially _ on how to solve the problems of the Universe.' 

Blair studied him for a while. He seemed very sad for some reason. Then she remembered the sad look in his eyes back in Cornwall, when she'd explained to him about Ellen, and she wondered if alien friendships were as complicated as human ones. And why had the Doctor seemingly been trying to warn her? The Master would never hurt her. It was out of the question.

Wasn't it?

She frowned. 'I.... I'm going to my room to sort through all the feels,' she said. She walked to the door. 

*****

Blair sat down on the edge of her bed and thought. She thought back to the Hedge Fields, and her heart started going a bit faster. She had asked the Master if she ever had to get in his way, what would happen to her, and he hadn't actually told her. He had said not to fret about it. But....

It didn't make sense; he loved her; they were best friends _.... _

_ But the Doctor was his friend, too, once. _ Blair looked at the ceiling.

The TARDIS lurched, and Blair fell to the floor. 

Blair sprang up and bolted to the door. The bell was tolling again, and when she got to the Console Room, the Master was frantically working the controls. 

'What's happening?!?!'

'Someone has seized control of the TARDIS - we are being drawn somewhere against our will!'

Blair ran over. 'Is it the person who stole the book?!'

The rotors settled. 'It very well might be.' The Master switched on the scanner, and his eyes widened. ' _ No.... _ ' 

Blair leaned around to get a better view. 'What? Where are we?' 

'The planet I fled all those years ago, Blair.'

'What planet?' She couldn't remember him mentioning anything like that before. He didn't look at her, only stared at the scanner and whispered,

' _ Gallifrey _ .' 


	2. Episode Two

' _ Gallifrey!? _ Your homeworld!?' Blair couldn't believe her ears. The Master stared at the screen of the scanner as if he wished he could make the view disappear. 

'Yes.' 

Blair stared at the scanner as well, then looked up at him. 'You never told me you ran away from home,' she said. He looked at her. 

'It is a very long story, and not one I am very fond of retelling.' 

_How dangerous_ is _this place_ , _if something about it made_ the Master _run away_ , she thought. 'Are we safe, do you think?' 

As if in answer, someone pounded on the door. 

'Occupants of this TARDIS - you will come out with your hands raised, or we will force entry!' 

The Master paled a little and grabbed Blair's hand. 'Quickly, Blair;' he whispered, 'to the wardrobe.' 

*****

As soon as they were in the wardrobe, the Master started rummaging through a rack full of long robes. He quickly found two orange ones, and handed one to Blair. 

'Here; wear this over your clothes. We have no time to lose.' He threw one over his own head, and Blair followed suit. As her head came through the high collar, the Master draped a red cowl over her shoulders. 

'What are these, anyway?' Blair asked, as he found his own cowl. 

'Prydonian robes. If we are to escape this situation, we must blend in, and the best way to start is by wearing my house's colours.' He paused, and smiled at Blair. 'You strike me as rather Prydonian yourself, for a human. Or perhaps Dromeian.'

Blair didn't really understand what all this meant, but she knew it was a compliment. She grinned. The Master picked up two slim bracelets, like the one the Doctor had been wearing, and slipped one over her wrist.

'Do not worry;' he said, fastening one around his own wrist, 'this will be rather strange to you, but think of it as something out of one of your science fiction books.' He took her hand. 

'What will seem strange?' she asked, but he only pushed a button on his bracelet and everything went black. 

Then everything was orange sky and tall spires. Blair gasped and looked around. 

'I did not wish to frighten you by saying "teleport,"' he said. 

Blair could not stop staring. It was beyond what she had guessed it to be like. 

'It's  _ beautiful _ ....' she breathed. He nodded. 

'It is. But it is also dangerous. Come. There are a small handful of people we can ask for protection.' 

As they walked through the streets, Blair watched all the skimmers whizzing by; the Time Lords in their flowy, colourful robes; the funny hats - or were they collars? - that some people seemed to be struggling to keep above their heads. She thought it all very thrilling. 

Eventually, they came to a door, and the Master knocked. A grey-haired man in robes similar to their own peered round the door, then his eyes widened. 

'The Master! Wh....wha....what are you doing here....?'

'I am not entirely _certain_ ; it seems my TARDIS was hijacked by someone on Gallifrey, and I and my companion were dragged here unwillingly. As you are on the High Council, I was wondering if you would....' He narrowed his eyes. '....Happen to _know_ anything about it, _Chancellor_ _Goth?_ ' 

Chancellor Goth paled and stepped back a little. 'I d....don't know anything about it, Master....' He closed his eyes and shook his head. 'Please....won't you and your companion come in?' The Master's eyes were still narrowed. 

'I do not know. I do not wish to walk headlong into a trap; my companion in tow.'

' _ Sincerely _ , Master!' Chancellor Goth exclaimed. 'I have  _ not  _ betrayed you! Please! Come in before someone sees you both.' 

The Master frowned, then glanced at Blair. 'One moment,' he said, and took her aside. 

'Blair, this could be dangerous.'

'I'd guessed that.' 

'Can you be ready to run at any moment?' he asked. Blair nodded. 

'Aren't I always?' 

He nodded, and they went back to the door. Chancellor Goth let them in. 

After he shut the door, he studied Blair for a moment. 'I haven't been introduced to your companion, have I?' he asked. Blair held out a hand. 

'Hi!' she said. 'I'm Blair.' He looked at her hand and raised his eyebrows. 

'Is that how you greet people where you're from?' Blair smiled. 

'Yeah; you would take my hand, and then we'd  _ shake _ hands.' Chancellor Goth slowly took her hand, and Blair shook it. 'See?'

He let go of her hand and looked at the Master. 

'What strange things that exist in the Universe,' he said. 'A primitive, is she?' 

Blair's eyebrows shot up. She felt the Master put a hand on her shoulder. 

'Perhaps you could ask  _ her _ where she is from,' he said, his voice hard. 

Chancellor Goth paled again, and he looked down at Blair. 'Where are you from....?' he asked.

'I'm from Earth,' Blair said flatly. 

'Oh. All right.' He sighed. 'Now can someone please tell me what is going on?' 

'"What is going on" is that my TARDIS has been dragged to this planet, and I have no knowledge as to  _ why _ .' The Master stepped forward a little. 'I have no wish to be back here at present, especially since this situation could endanger Blair. Who knows what the other Time Lords would think of her.' Chancellor Goth frowned, then looked at Blair again. 

'Yes.... There is something rather odd about her....' He was scrutinising her, and Blair felt uncomfortable. 'Master....why is she - '

'That is none of your concern.' 

Chancellor Goth looked at Blair warily now. She didn't like it. He turned back to the Master. 

'The only reason I can think of for you being dragged here is that the CIA wants something with you. And judging by your companion, it's no wonder why.' 

The Master glared at him and started to say something, then closed his eyes and collected himself. He looked at Chancellor Goth again. 

'Do you happen to have another exit? I have a contact in the CIA; perhaps  _ she _ will be more competent to sort out this mess than you are.'

The Time Lord frowned and led them through the house to a door. The Master reached for the knob, then paused. 

'Goth, if I hear anything from the High Council about Blair, I will be very disappointed in you. And when I am disappointed....well. I think your plans for your future might.... _ diminish _ .' 

'I won't tell anyone, Master,' Goth said. 'Please....go before it's too late.' 

The Master gave him an icy look, then opened the door and ushered Blair out. 

Blair's mind was spinning. What had Chancellor Goth meant about her being 'odd'? She looked up at the Master. 

'Is....is something wrong with me?' she asked. 'Be honest.'

The Master sighed. 'No, Blair; there is nothing wrong with you. Do you remember the three different versions of the Hedge Fields? And how I could remember the two that did not happen?'

'Yeah....' 

'Time Lords have a sense of when things are unusual with time, and because of the anomaly that allows you to live - and perhaps, also, your rather uncommon form of telepathy - Chancellor Goth sensed something strange about you.' 

Blair's eyes widened. 'Can you sense it, too?' 

'I can; however, I am used to it, whereas he is not.' 

'Could it alert other Time Lords to our presence?'

The Master looked sharply behind them, and his grip tightened on her hand.

'Blair.  _ Run _ .' 

They took off, and Blair could clearly hear footsteps behind them. The Master fumbled in his robe's pockets and quickly found a staser. He turned and swerved in front of Blair, then fired, and she heard someone fall. The Master took her hand again, and they ran. 

*****

They reached a building. Everything was completely still. 

'Something's wrong, isn't it?' Blair said. 

'Yes....' 

There was the sound of a staser fizzing to life behind them. 

'Don't move,' came a voice. 

'Miraleti,' the Master said quietly. 'This is unprecedented.' 

'I want both of you to move into the building, then into my office.' 

'We were coming to pay you a call, Miraleti. Do you think you could possibly cease to hold us at staserpoint?'

There was silence. Blair held her breath. Then the staser powered down. 

'Turn around  _ very slowly, _ ' Miraleti said. 

Blair and the Master turned around. Blair saw a woman standing in front of them in black and white robes. She wondered what house black and white was for. 

'So,' Miraleti said. 'If you were coming for a visit, you'll have no problem doing as I say. Go in.' 

*****

Blair looked around as they entered Miraleti's office. It had almost completely bare walls, except for a star chart and a map of a solar system she hadn't ever seen before. There were computers everywhere. 

'Won't you sit down?' Miraleti asked, gesturing to two chairs near them. 

_ Do not sit, _ came the Master's voice in Blair's mind.  _ If there is danger, sitting will make escape more difficult. _ Her eyes widened, and she moved a little closer to him. 

'Miraleti, what is the meaning of all this?' the Master said. 'Tell me why the Celestial Intervention Agency has hijacked my TARDIS, and why  _ you _ \- the last person I should expect to - held me and my companion at staserpoint. You are supposed to be working  _ with _ me; I believe I am entitled to an explanation.'

Miraleti sighed. 'I'm sorry about that, Master - I had to make it seem like you were my prisoner.' The Master frowned. 

'Go on.' 

'I need your help with something, and I don't want anyone to know we're working together.' 

The Master moved forward with a deliberate step. 'And endangering my and Blair's lives is how you go about it?' he said. Miraleti quickly shook her head.

'I didn't mean to endanger anyone - I thought it was all under control - it was all so urgent!'

'What is urgent enough to require dragging my TARDIS here by force, Miraletiarcalialilatherit?'

Miraleti backed away. The Master glared at her for what felt like forever before she said, 

'There have been books of great historical importance disappearing from the Archives; all replaced with temporal contact bombs. I need a renegade to investigate, and you're the only one I know.'

Blair caught her breath. Missing books....

'W....we had the same happen to us....' she said tentatively. 'The bomb nearly blew up the TARDIS.' 

Miraleti looked at her, then squinted, then raised her eyebrows. She looked up at the Master. 

'I won't tell the High Council about her. Don't worry.' The Master frowned deeper. 

'You most certainly will  _ not _ tell the High Council.' 

_ He's on my side, _ Blair thought.  _ How could I have doubted it? That Doctor person didn't know what he was talking about. _

Miraleti was looking at Blair again. 'How did you dispose of the bomb?'

'The Master partitioned that part of the TARDIS off, and then he jettisoned it.' 

Miraleti nodded. 'I see. Were there any hints as to who planted it?' 

Blair shook her head. 'Er....no, but I think it must've been the Monk. It's the kind of thing he'd do.'

She shook her head. 'It  _ could  _ be.... But....I don't think so. Here; let me show you both the records.'

They followed her over to a computer, where she pulled up a screen full of charts and circular writing. The Master scrutinised the display.

'Hm....yes. It does not seem quite his style.'

Blair laughed a little. 'I don't understand a word of that.' Miraleti switched off the computer. 

'So will you help?' she asked, her brow furrowed. The Master nodded. 

'Yes. We shall. Blair and I were going to investigate this anyhow, so I see no harm in it.' She breathed a sigh of relief. 

'Good. I shall have your TARDIS unclamped, and I'll set up a distraction so you can escape.' The Master gave a grudging smile. 

'Thank you, Miraleti. Next time you require assistance, kindly set up a distress beacon?' Miraleti nodded, then left the room. 

Blair looked up at the Master. 'So your  _ friend _ dragged us here?  If that's what most Time Lords are like, I can see why you ran away.' 

'She is not exactly a friend,' the Master said. 'More a.... _ co-conspirator _ .' 

Miraleti came back in the room. 

'It's clear for about forty microspans; if you're going to run, I'd do it now.' 

*****

As soon as they were outside the building, the Master took Blair's hand. 

'Quickly, Blair, we should teleport back to the TARDIS right now.' 

'But why - ' she started, but then there was blackness, and then the familiar warm glow of the TARDIS console room. She cleared her throat. 'Why couldn't we do it in the building?'

'I did not wish Miraleti to see we had time rings. One can never be too careful.' 

'Oh.' 

Blair thought for a moment about all she'd just experienced. Then she smiled. 'You know, I think your planet's amazing. Like you said - dangerous, but beautiful.' Now the Master smiled. 

'Thank you.' 

Blair grinned. 'So shall we go investigate this book-robbery-en-masse?' She followed him over to the console. 

'Yes,' he said. 'We shall. And perhaps it will somehow be related to our hunt for the Taft Machine. Perhaps we will find it. And then....'

He looked up, wistful; thoughtful. Blair watched him with a smile; her alien friend was out to save the Universe again. He was completely distracted; he usually had his mental barriers up, but he was thinking rather loudly of something right now; probably how they'd use the Taft Machine to help everyo - 

Wait....

_ No.... _

Blair gasped sharply and stumbled backwards. The Master immediately sprang forward and caught her. 

'What is it? What is wrong?' he asked. His eyes were filled with worry. It broke Blair's heart. 

'Uhh....n....n....nothing....just a....er....' She looked around the Console Room frantically; as if  _ that _ would help her right now. 'Just a....mental thinggy. Or something.' She knew she sounded ridiculous. The Master raised an eyebrow. 

'Something....?' 

Blair shook her head. 'No....no....don't worry. I'll be all right.' 

She shook her head and walked over to the Alcove. The floor of the room was rather fascinating, actually; it helped keep her mind off her racing heart and shallow breathing. She heard the Master come up behind her. 

'Blair? Is something the matter? Is your neural revision causing you pain?' 

'Yeah. You could say that.' She hated how choked her voice was. She looked up at him. 

'It's not like I'm going to drop dead or anything. I just need a moment alone.' The Master frowned. 

'Are you certain?' Blair nodded. 'Very well.' 

Blair smiled feebly at him, then walked down the corridor. She could feel him watching her; feel his concern. She wished she could reassure him. 

*****

In her room, Blair put her face in her pillow and sobbed harder and longer than she ever remembered having done before. She might've fallen asleep with the way she lost track of time; she wasn't sure. Eventually, she turned over and stared up at her ceiling.

_ Surely he can't be trying for that, _ she thought.  _ I've gotta be mistaken or something.... _ Then  she groaned and put her face in her pillow again. 

_ I know what he thought. It was crystal clear.  _

A while later, she got up, walked over to her desk, opened her notebook, and sat down. 

'I will just have to make a parry to it,' she thought. 

She started writing.


	3. Episode Three

Blair felt the motion of the TARDIS landing and looked up from her notebook. She'd been writing her plan for quite a while now, and she was satisfied with the basics. She felt more at peace. She took a deep breath, stood, and walked through the door and to the Console Room.

As soon as she put a toe into the room, the Master looked up, plainly worried.

'Blair - you never know - the Science Major's virus could still be restructuring your - '

She strode over and took his hand. He stopped. 

'I'm fine,' she said. 'Really, I am.' 

He studied her for a moment. 'Are you certain? You could have some sort of fluctuating brain damage....' 

Blair laughed, and nodded. 'I'm all right. Let's go charge some aliens some overdue book fines.' 

A slow smile came over the Master's face, and Blair let go of his hand. He flicked on the scanner. 

Blair saw a rather dull planet; all pale, dry sand and empty skies, but there was a tall, extravagant building in the distance. It didn't go with the scenery. The Master ran a few environment checks, then reached under the console and handed Blair a staser. 

'They are most likely hostile,' he said. 

'Got it. Let's go.' 

*****

The wind was blowing hard when they got outside. They approached the building and the Master tried the door, but it was locked. He frowned, took out his TCE and switched a few settings, and scanned the door lock. After a moment, he entered a combination, and the door swung open. 

The room was an expanse of marble and obsidian. Ahead of them was another room with a bookshelf, and as they approached, Blair saw a book materialise out of thin air and fall into place on the shelf. She gasped. 

'Did you - '

'Yes,' the Master said. 'I saw.' He started to scan with the TCE as they approached, but when he put his hand forward, it was repelled. He frowned, and pushed forward again, but was stopped. 

'Is it a force field?' Blair asked. The Master frowned deeper. 

'No....it....' He paused. 'I believe it is some sort of barrier....' 

He scanned the space between them and the room, then switched the TCE off. 

'Yes....' he murmured. 'It is some sort of psionic barrier, willing us to stay away from the bookshelf.' He stepped back a bit, and studied the area just above their heads. Blair couldn't figure out what he was looking at. 

'There!' the Master exclaimed. 'That must be whatever transmitter they are using to project the barrier. It must be unimaginably strong to influence  _ my _ mind.... _ well _ . It shan't be for long.' He switched on the TCE. 'It is rather narrow; I wonder how they fit the necessary circuitry inside.'

'I can't see anything,' Blair said. The Master came to stand behind her, then pointed. 

'Right over there. Can you see it now? It is barely visible, but if you concentrate, you can see it.' Blair shook her head. 'Hm. Perhaps it is only visible to Time Lord eyes.' He aimed the TCE and was about to press the button, when a distant scream stopped them. They looked at each other. Without a word, they took off in the direction of the sound. 

*****

'They must be just around the corner!' Blair panted. 

' _ Please! Help me! _ ' came the voice again. She frowned. It sounded awfully familiar. 

Suddenly the floor ceased to exist under her feet. She felt the Master seize her and pull her back, and shakily, she looked down and saw a pit so deep the bottom was invisible. 

'Th....thank y....you....' she gasped. The Master slowly let her go, and she stood, trembling, on her own two feet. She stepped back. 

The Master knelt down near the edge of the pit. 'Hello?' he called. 'Is someone down there?' 

' _ Yes! _ ' came the voice. ' _ Help me please! _ '

'Any ideas?' Blair asked. The Master peered intently into the pit, then called, 

'Young man, do you have anything at all with you?' 

' _ Just the clothes on my back and a bit of equipment. _ ' 

'What equipment? It could be vital.' 

The voice paused. 

' _ I.... I don't think I should tell you.... _ ' 

'If you are concerned I will have knowledge of future technology, I am a Time Lord, and I can practically  _ smell _ that you have travelled through the Vortex, so I know all about such things.'

Blair's eyebrows rose. 'There's a time traveller down there?' The Master gave a tight nod. 

'So will you tell me what equipment you have?' he called. 'It might be of use.' 

There was another pause.

' _ I have a Vortex manipulator, _ ' the voice came again. Blair couldn't figure out why it was so familiar. 

'Is it broken from your fall?' 

' _ The directional controls are shot _ .' 

'Can you still lock onto a beacon?'

' _ I think so _ ....' 

'One moment. I shall set up a beacon you can hone in on.' 

The Master changed a few settings on his TCE, then flicked a switch. 'It is running,' he called. 

There was a pause, then a strange sound, and then....

Thomas Andrews was standing in front of the two of them, staring. 

'Mr Suzerain.... Blair....' he whispered. The Master smiled. 

'I  _ thought _ I had an odd feeling about you, Mr Andrews.'

'What in the galaxy are you doing  _ here?! _ ' Blair exclaimed. Thomas looked at the floor and shuffled his feet. 

'I stole my parents' Vortex manipulator,' he said.

*****

'So, the reason I was at your school, Blair, is 'cos my parents are Time Agents, and they were investigating an alien invasion,' Thomas explained as they walked back to the bookshelf. 'It was the Plutosaurs, see? Well anyway, I heard about this book theivery the other day, and I wanted to do something, and nobody  _ else _ did, so I took their Vortex manipulator and came here.' Blair grinned at him. She'd noticed the Master was smirking a little as well. 

'I just can't believe that you were a time traveller all that time,' she said. 

' _ I  _ can't believe  _ you'd _ been travelling with a Time Lord all that time!' Thomas exclaimed. 'Actually, I can't believe that my  _ teacher _ was a Time Lord all that time!' He grinned. 'I'm just feeling a little star-struck, okay?' Blair laughed. 'So what's it like? Living in a TARDIS?'

'Pretty awesome!' Blair said. Then she frowned. 'It....it can be tragic, as well, though. But....yeah. All in all, it's pretty awesome.' 

There was a pause, and then the Master spoke. 'Have you found anything about the missing books, Mr Andrews, or did you only just arrive?' 

'I materialised about three-quarters of the way down the pit, and fell.' 

'What a welcome!' Blair said. '"Hello - we are a library! We greet you with death traps!"' 

Thomas laughed. 'Have  _ you _ found anything?' 

'We found a bookshelf,' Blair said, 'but there's some sort of psycho-barrier around it.' Thomas frowned. 

'A what?'

'A psionic barrier,' the Master explained. 'It wills you to stay away. A bit like a perception filter, only much more powerful.' 

'Huh. Weird.' Thomas shook his head. 'How're we gonna get the books, then?'

' _ You won't _ ,' came a whispery voice. Everyone turned. Blair was shocked to see a tall, phosphorescent alien with three legs walking towards them. 

'What  _ are _ you?' she whispered. 

' _ I'm an Alari, and so are they _ .' It stopped, and two other aliens came to stand behind it. Blair felt a horrible tugging at her mind, then instant relief as the Master put a hand on her forehead. 

'No,' he said. 'You shall not touch her mind,  _ or _ mine, you foolish creatures.' The Alari laughed, and Blair shuddered. 

' _ Why are we foolish? _ ' one said. The Master manoeuvred Thomas and Blair behind him, still keeping his hand on Blair's forehead. 

_ Put up those defenses I taught you _ , she heard him think. 

'You are foolish because if you knew who I was, you would not be attempting to probe my mind; you would be cowering before me!' 

The Alari all laughed again. ' _ We know who you are. We aren't afraid. We could cripple you in one of your heartsbeats. _ ' He narrowed his eyes.

'Nobody can cripple me.' He fixed his gaze on the eyes of the Alari in front. 'But I can cripple  _ you _ . You will o - '

' _ Your hypnotic powers have no effect on us. Now will you hand over the young one, or will we have to crush you and the Time Agents' son? _ '

Blair gasped. The Master smiled. 'Hand over Blair?' 

' _ She is an anomaly. We need to consume her temporal energy to survive. _ '

'Wait -  _ what?! _ ' Blair whimpered. She didn't like the sound of this. 

'I suspected that is what you are - grazers on temporal energies - that is why you have stolen the books, is it not?' the Master said. 'You are feeding off of their historical importance.'

' _ HAND HER OVER, TIME LORD! _ ' the Alari all bellowed. Blair shrank back against the Master. He chuckled. 

'Oh, I would be  _ happy _ to.... Blair - why don't you walk over to the Alari....' 

_ What on Earth? _ Blair looked up at him. 

'Mr  _ Suzerain! _ ' Thomas cried, but he threw him a warning look which silenced him. He turned back to Blair, and their eyes met, and then she understood. She looked at the Alari, and tried to walk over as confidently as she could; mental defenses up as much as possible. 

'I have a device in my pocket that's saturated with temporal energy as well,' she said. 'Do you want to see it?'

The Alari looked at her with what seemed a rather hungry expression, and she gulped. 

' _ Yes! Of course! Show us! _ ' they cried. She withdrew the staser. 

'This device has lived inside a time machine for....' she tried to think of something to say. 'For....who knows how long! Do you want to see it in action?' 

' _ Yes - YES! _ ' 

She pulled back the lever and fired three times, and the Alari fell stunned to the floor. She sank to her knees with a groan. 

The Master and Thomas were quickly by her side. 'Blair - are you all right?!' Thomas exclaimed. 

'Yes - yes - just give me a moment....' She wanted to be sick. Slowly, she steadied her breathing and got back up. She looked straight at the Master. 

'Do you think there are any more Alari around?' she asked. The Master closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment, then shook his head. 

'I believe not; the only telepath I can sense in this area is you.' Thomas' eyes widened. 

'Wait, what?!'

'Never mind,' Blair said. 

'That means if they were controlling the barrier with their own thoughts, it should be disabled for the moment.' 

'We have to go  _ now _ , then, before they wake up,' Blair said. Without hesitation, they all turned and ran. 

*****

The barrier was, in fact, down. The Master fumbled in his pockets and withdrew a bag, which he handed to Blair. 

'Both of you start filling this sack with the books. I shall find the main machinery for the time scoop they are undoubtedly using and disable it.'

Blair and Thomas nodded, and he ran off. 

'Come on, Thomas - we have to do this fast,' Blair said. They started loading the books. 

*****

The Master ran towards a large machine at the far end of the room, which turned out to indeed be a special generator for a time scoop. He readied the TCE, then stopped. 

There were very familiar circuits attached to it. 

'Taftian mechanics....' he muttered. 'He  _ has _ been here.... Perhaps I could dismantle it and use....' 

He felt a faint twinge in his mind and shook his head. 'No time.' He blasted the generator into ruin with the TCE and ran back to where Blair and Mr Andrews were. 

They only had one book left, so he picked it up and lifted the sack, dropping it in as he did so. 

'Quickly; we must leave,' he said. 'I felt the Alari's telepathy beginning to strengthen again.' Blair scrambled to her feet.

'But where will we go?' asked Mr Andrews. 

'My TARDIS, naturally.' 

His eyes widened, and he shook his head slowly. Blair took his hand. 

'Come on, Thomas Andrews,' she said, helping him up. 'This is no time to be star-struck! We have timelines to save!'

*****

When they stepped into the TARDIS, Thomas grinned and squeaked. 

'Oh.... _ Wow _ ....' Blair hugged him. 

'Bigger on the inside, yeah?' 

Thomas nodded enthusiastically. The Master set the sack down, and programmed a few controls on the console. Seeing her chance, Blair ran over and sorted through the books.

'Yeah! Got my book back!' She lifted  _ Sense & Sensibility _ high, then hugged it. Rummaging more, she found the Master's book and set it aside. 'How're we gonna send these books back to their proper times?' she asked. 

'Mr Andrews can hand them over to his Time Agent parents; they will know what to do with them. We have.... _ other matters _ to attend to. Taft-related matters.' 

Blair frowned. She didn't want to think about that right now; she just wanted to have adventures together. 'Oh....okay,' she said.

'Mr Andrews, to return you home, I need your manipulator,' the Master said. Thomas walked over and handed it to him.

'Here you go.' 

'Thank you.' The Master plugged a wire from the console into it and studied the scanner. He selected something, made a small adjustment, then pulled the demat lever. 

'I shall take you home a few hours after the time you left;' he said, 'it should keep your timeline properly arranged.'

Something on the console dinged, and the time rotors settled. Thomas looked around the room, then back at the both of them. 

'Oh,  _ thank you _ so much - this has been  _ amazing! _ ' 

Blair grinned; the Master chuckled. 'You are most welcome,' he said. He unplugged Thomas' manipulator and handed it to him. 'Here you are.' He flicked the door switch. 'Now come along.' He lifted the sack, and they headed out. 

*****

'Thomas! You scared us half to death!' 

His mum and dad ran forward as Thomas stepped out of the TARDIS. 

'What did you mean by stealing a Vortex manipulator?' Mum cried. 'What have you done to the timelines to warrant a  _ Time Lord _ escorting you home?' 

'Actually, he has rather helped  _ repair _ the timelines, ma'am,' Mr Suzerain said, handing her the sack. 'Ms Andrews, I am sure you have the resources to return these books to their proper places in their timelines?' She looked startled. 

'Yes, but....' she looked at Thomas. 'You did this?' He nodded solemnly. 

'We all did.' 

'We were so worried about you!' Dad said. 

'Don't ever do that again!' 

'If I were you, I would not be over harsh with young Mr Andrews,' Mr Suzerain interrupted. 'He helped save the Universe, after all.' 

Thomas was grateful for this. Mum smiled at him. 'Well.... I suppose.... But you better tell us all about it.'

Thomas grinned. 'I will.' Blair grinned, too. 

''Bye, Thomas. I hope we bump into each other again.' 

'You too!' He turned to Mr Suzerain. 'But I have to know before you go - are you one of the infamous Renegades?' Mr Suzerain smiled quietly. 

'I am.' 

Thomas' eyes went wide. 'Are you.... Which one....?' 

Mr Suzerain and Blair were in the TARDIS doorway by now, and Mr Suzerain was still smiling. He leaned out the doorway and said, 

'I am the Master. Goodbye, Thomas. I hope we meet again.' 

Thomas' jaw dropped. Blair waved, the door shut, and the TARDIS dematerialised. Thomas and his parents all looked at each other, then Thomas burst into laughter. 

'I survived  _ riding in the Master's TARDIS! _ ' he laughed. 'Wait until Joe hears about  _ this! _ '

*****

Blair nearly fell over laughing. 'Did you see his  _ face?! _ ' The Master was still smiling. 

'I did.' 

Suddenly Blair remembered something, and her heart dropped. 'Master - what's up with Edmond Taft? What did you see on the Alari planet?' 

'Ah - I saw some of Taft's handiwork attached to the time scoop. I wish to investigate. But first....' He smiled. 'A history lesson.' 

Ooh. Interesting. 'A history lesson?' 

'Indeed. Do you remember, when we were on the planet Home, I said I would tell you who James Braid was?' 

Blair thought for a moment, then grinned. 

'Yes! I  _ do _ remember!'

'Well. I am about to tell you -  _ firsthand. _ ' Blair gasped in delight. 

'Where and when are we going?!' 

'Manchester; the middle of the nineteenth century.' 

He pulled the demat lever. 


	4. Episode Four

Blair rummaged through the Victorian clothes in the TARDIS wardrobe. She soon found a purple jacket-and-skirt set, and she put it on over a white high-collared shirt. She also found a black boater hat with cherries on it that rather seemed to match, and decided she'd wear that as well. 

When she walked out, the Master was wearing a dark overcoat and his cravat - although it was pinned down in a tamer manner than usual. She grinned at him. 

'This is fab!' The Master smiled at her, then looked serious. 

'Blair, I need to lay down a time-travel rule for this excursion.' Blair nodded. 

'Okay; what?' 

'This is an important era in the history of human psychology on Earth. You must not mention, under any circumstances, to any human, anything about telepathy, or my methods of hypnosis. Are you clear on this?' 

Blair raised her eyebrows. 'Er....yeah! I get it. Why, though?' The Master smiled, clearly enjoying explaining this part of history.

'Ah, well, Dr James Braid - aside from being an exceptional surgeon - was an investigator into certain psychological matters pertaining to hypnosis, and his work is vital to the history of science in human psychology.' 

Blair's eyes widened. 'Wow....and we're going to meet him?' 

'We are. Though, as I mentioned before, I already  _ have  _ met him, and he has actually managed to teach me a few things. Anyhow, if he discovers anything of import on the subject that is not of his time or world, it could upset history. This is rather a fixed point, so we must be cautious.'

Blair nodded. ''Kay. I understand.' 

'Good. Shall we go, then?' 

She grinned. 'Natch!' 

The Master looked confusedly amused as he flicked the door switch. They moved to the door. 

'I must confess; I am not quite certain where this "natch" saying comes from. It must be a peculiar human phrase.'

'It means "naturally",' Blair explained as they stepped outside. He smiled. 

'Ah.' 

The Master locked the TARDIS, and they walked off down the street. It was late afternoon, and didn't seem very busy. 

'What year is it?' Blair asked. 

'It is June, 1842.' They came to a door and stopped. 'And here we are.' He knocked.

The door opened, and a man with sideburns and floppy hair looked out, smiling when he saw them. 

'Mr Retsam Suzerain! And you must be one of his students! How are you?' He had a friendly, Scottish-accented voice, and Blair liked him instantly. 

'I am well, Dr Braid,' the Master said. 'This is indeed one of my students; she wished to know about your research, so I brought her to meet you.' 

'Well, that is wonderful! Will you come in?' 

He led them into the house, and to a room where they sat down. He smiled at Blair. 

'What is your name, young lady?' he asked. 

'I'm Blair Kenneth, Dr Braid. It's good to meet you.' 

James Braid smiled. 'And you as well, Miss Kenneth.' He looked at the Master. 'Has your teaching been going well?' The Master smiled, a little ironically. 

'My original position came to a rather abrupt end, due to the school having.... _ safety issues _ ....however, I am now Miss Kenneth's private tutor. And your practice?' 

Dr Braid frowned a little. 'Ah....well....I had some trouble recently with defamation, but I do not think it has taken too much away from my practice. It's rather more of an annoyance.' Blair raised her eyebrows. 

'What happened?' she asked. He looked surprised. 

'You have not heard? A preacher by the name of M'Neille published a sermon denouncing me as a fraud and a heathen, and said I did not do good surgery.' Blair was surprised. 

'Why did he say all that?' Dr Braid waved a hand casually.

'Oh, he doesn't like my work in neurohypnology. He claimed it was pagan, despite what I have proven scientifically about it. I published a paper in response, and I hope it has cleared up the truth.' 

Blair shook her head, confused. 'If you proved it with science, why didn't they get it? I don't understand.' 

James Braid smiled kindly at her. 'Well, some folk can be rather superstitious. And some folk always tend to view science warily when it comes to religion.' He shrugged his shoulders, then changed the subject. 'Will you stay for tea?'

A rather explosive sound outside stopped any response. They all turned to the window, and Blair's eyes widened when she saw a sleek, pentagonal spaceship sitting in the street outside.

The Master sprang to his feet, Blair behind him. She heard Dr Braid getting up behind them as they ran for the door. When they got outside, they were greeted by the sight of two green, furry creatures Blair decided looked sort of like chihuahuas with cats' ears. 

'dr james braid we need your assistance' the taller one on the left said. They all stared, even the Master. 

'Who....what  _ are _ you?' Dr Braid stammered. 'Why do you need help?' 

'i am derit this is ypeels we need to learn about your hypnotism'

Blair wondered if the TARDIS' translation circuit was damaged; she had heard some weird alien speech before, but never aliens with such bad grammar. The Master sprang forward.

'Out of the question!' he barked. 'You will return home at  _ once! _ You have no place on this - 

'we do we need his knowledge'

'You do not!' The Master was reaching into his coat's inner pocket. 'Leave at  _ once! _ '

'we also require edmond taft's invention' 

The Master froze. Blair's brow furrowed, and she looked up at him. He stared at the aliens for a minute, and then his expression became decidedly  _ cunning _ . Blair shivered. 

'Taft's machine, say you? Interesting.' He stepped closer to them. 'Leave this good doctor alone;  _ I _ am the better hypnotist.' Doctor Braid started to protest, but the Master threw him a look, and he stopped. 'If you show me where the Taft Machine is, I shall show you a superior form of hypnotism than he can show you.' The aliens shuffled back and forth on the cobblestones. 

'how do you mean i do not understand we require this information to invade this place do you know this'

'I guessed,' the Master said. 

There was a pause. 

'very well we think the machine is this way follow us' the alien on the right said. 

'One moment.' The Master turned to Blair, his voice dropping to a whisper. 'Blair; stay with Dr Braid; keep an eye out for anything unusual.' Blair snorted. 

'What - unusual? Like aliens showing up and talking in run-on sentences?' 

The Master smirked. 'Simply keep watch. And keep Dr Braid from having a heart attack; I am sure he feels like having one right now.'

Blair nodded. 'Okay. You be careful. I hope you have a plan.' 

'I always do.' 

He turned back to the aliens. 'Lead on,' he said, and the aliens led him away. 

Dr Braid was shaking his head. 'Green foxes? I do not understand....' Blair smiled at him. 

'Dr Braid, let's go back inside, and I'll make you a cup of tea,' she said. 

*****

'What species are you?' the Master asked as the aliens led him down an alleyway. 

'we are the roputs' 

'I see. And you wish to invade Earth using hypnosis?' 

'not the earth only manchester' the shorter one - Ypeels - said. The Master frowned.

'Hm. How.... _ peculiar _ .' 

The Roputs stopped. 'you will show us this superior hypnosis now' the larger Roput said. 

The Master laughed. 'Not until you have shown me the Taft Machine.' Did they really think him that foolish? The creatures glared at him, and Ypeels drew a gun and levelled it at him.

'no you will show us before or i will disable your nervous system' he said. The Master frowned and reached in his inner pocket. 

'Really? Tell me; which one of you is the leader?' he asked. He took out the TCE and switched it on.  

'i am and i agree with him' Derit said. 

'And is it only the leader who knows where the Taft Machine is?' 

'no i know as well' Ypeels said. 

The Master fired the TCE at Derit and shrunk him down without another word. Ypeels made a sort of gasp and stared at the Master in horror. 

'And now that you have seen I can dispatch not just a  _ common _ Roput, but your  _ leader _ , in the blink of an eye,' he said, tucking away the Tissue Compression Eliminator, 'do you still think it is such a good idea to point a gun at me?' 

Ypeels hastily shoved the gun in his pocket. 

'Now. You will show me where the Taft Machine is,  _ before _ I show you my hypnosis, or you will die, as did your leader,' the Master said. The creature looked desperately at its miniaturised leader, carefully picked it up and put it in its pocket, and started again down the alley, with a frightened glance over its shoulder at the Master. 

*****

Blair had just set down the teapot when she happened to glance at the window. She did a doubletake, then yelped and dashed over. 

'No.... I don't believe it....' 

'What is it, Miss Kenneth?' Dr Braid asked. Blair stared at the two figures walking down the street. 

'How are  _ they  _ here....' she whispered. 

*****

The Taft Machine was, strangely enough, sitting on a table, blocking the rest of the alley. It was most certainly a trap. But this was the last Taft Machine in existence, and beggars could not be choosers. 

'it is here as we thought we should take it back to the ship' 

The Master shook his head. 'No....that would not be a good thing to do.' 

He considered the scene. He wanted to take the machine right now, but he also had the responsibility of getting these aliens out of Manchester before they did any real damage to the timelines. No good in ruling the Universe if there was nothing but a wrecked mess left, after all. He rummaged in his coat pocket - noticing with satisfaction how this made Ypeels flinch and take a step back - and withdrew a compact forcefield generator. He set it up next to the Taft Machine and switched it on. 

'A portable force field,' he explained to the trembling creature. 'It will protect the machine. You will take me back to your ship now, and I will show you what I said I would.' 

The Roput, still trembling, started back down the alley. 

*****

Blair saw the Master walk by outside and flew to the door. She threw it open. 

'Wait! Master - wait! You won't believe what I just saw!' 

But he was already inside the ship.

*****

The Roput led the Master to the flight deck and walked over to the pilot. 

'it is only us now we must learn the secrets of mind control from this person' Ypeels said. The pilot turned, and they looked anxiously at the Master. 

'Ah; I said I would show you hypnosis,' he said, quietly. 

'yes now show us' Ypeels said. The Master nodded.

'I shall. Look at me.' The Roputs did. 'Good. Now look into my eyes.' They did, and instantly fell into a trance. 

_How could such weak-minded creatures even_ entertain _the notion of controlling anyone here?_ the Master thought. 'I do not think I ever told you my name;' he said, 'I am the _Master_. _And_ _you will obey me._ ' The creatures stared at him, transfixed, and the Master took a step towards them. 'I agreed to show you hypnosis, and you foolishly accepted. So now you know. This is hypnosis, and you can do _nothing_ to resist it.' He smiled. ' _Be careful what you wish for_.' 

He took another few steps closer to them, willing them into immobilisation. 'As I said:  _ you will obey me _ .' 

'we will obey you' the creatures intoned. 

'This is a vital time in this planet's history, and you will cease to interfere. You will leave this planet  _ now _ , and you will refrain from ever returning. Do you understand?'

'yes'

'Good. You will allow me to leave, and when I am no longer on your ship - and a safe distance away from its thrusters - you will immediately depart.' 

'yes master' 

'I am leaving,' he said, and turned. 'Watch your monitors.' 

*****

Blair watched the Master step off the ship's gangplank, which was quickly whisked up. Soon the ship shot into the sky and disappeared, and Blair ran over to the him, her words all coming at once.

'Master - I don't understand what's going on - Ellen is here - and she's with the Science Major! The one who kidnapped me!'

The Master's eyes widened, but he was cut off from saying anything by James Braid coming out of the house. 

'Mr Suzerain, I don't know what's going on, but your student is very distressed!' he exclaimed. The Master took Blair's hand. 

'I am sorry, Dr Braid, but something of an emergency has come up, and we must leave. It was good to see you again.' Dr Braid smiled. 

'You as well! I wish you well.' He turned his smile to Blair. 'And it was good meeting you as well, Miss Kenneth.' Blair grinned, despite the situation. 

'Ta, Dr Braid. It was good meeting you, too.' She looked up at the Master, and they were thinking the same thing. 

They took off into the night. 

*****

'The Taft Machine!' the Master exclaimed as they pelted down the alley. 'That  _ must  _ be what they are looking for! Let us hope they do not know how to disable a force field.' 

Blair shook her head. 'I just don't understand how they  _ got _ here!' 

'I am starting to form some rather nasty theories mysel - '

They pulled up short. The Science Major and Ellen were leaning over the Taft Machine, the force field disabled. The Master frowned. 

'And it seems they were all correct. The  _ Rani _ . How very stereotypical.' 

'The Master!' the Rani exclaimed, a smile on her lips; the kind of smile Blair recognised from when she'd kidnapped her. It made her shudder. 'You aren't going to stop me with  _ her _ in your company,  _ are _ you?'

The Master went pale. 

'You see,' the Rani continued, 'after some consideration on Blair Kenneth's few words said to me, I've realised one of your weaknesses. So you cannot stop us.' 

Blair stared at Ellen, who was staring at the Master, her eyes wide; shaking hard. Then Blair looked at the machine, which the Science Major - or rather,  _ Rani _ , was lifting. 

'Master - a staser! Quick! Or shoot the machine with your TCE!' 

'He won't do that  _ either _ , girl!' the Rani laughed. 'You see, he knows this is the last of Taft's machines. He won't risk destroying it.'

Blair saw Ellen lock eyes with the Master. He narrowed his. 

'Miss Hastings,' he said, 'you will obey me.' 

'I will obey - '

Ellen yelped when the Rani slapped her. 

'Snap out of it, Hastings! He's trying to hypnotise you!' 

Ellen gasped and her eyes went even wider. She leaped over the table and ran into a hut, the Rani close behind and carrying the machine under one arm. Blair and the Master clambered over the table just as the hut made a familiar whooshing noise and vanished. It was a TARDIS. 

'Quickly - back to ours!' the Master cried, and they ran. 

*****

As soon as they were in the TARDIS, the Master dashed over to the console and started working the controls. Then he stood back and let out a breath. 

'Blair, if you wish to assist in retrieving the Taft Machine, I would suggest changing into more practical clothes.' 

Blair looked down at her full Victorian garb and nodded. 'I'm on it.' She went to the doorway, then stopped. 

'"The Rani"?' 

'The Science Major is another Time Lord;' the Master said, 'her name is Ushas, but she calls herself the Rani, because she is queen of the planet Miasimia Goria.' 

'Oh.' 

'And she is infatuated with science and knowledge of any kind.' 

'Oh.' 

'Which makes her having possession of the Taft Machine very dangerous.' 

'Oh.' 

The Master raised an eyebrow, then chuckled. 'And you are quite accustomed to perils and adventures with dangerous aliens by now.' 

Blair gave the faintest flicker of a smile; something was ticking over in her mind. 'Master, what weakness was the Rani talking about? She said you had a weakness, and it's something  _ I _ mentioned?' 

The Master went strangely pale again, and studied the scanner intently. 

'It is nothing you need be concerned about,' he said. 

'But - if it's my fault - '

The Master's head jerked up. ' _ No _ . It is  _ not _ your fault, and you mustn't blame yourself for us losing the machine. Do not trouble yourself, my dear.' 

Blair thought about asking more, but decided against it, and turned back to the corridor.

*****

The Master watched her go, then scowled at the scanner. He found the coordinates he was looking for, selected them, and pulled the demat lever. The time rotors rose and fell with a comforting sound. 

' _ Weakness! _ ' he muttered. 'Who does  _ Ushas _ think she  _ is? _ It is not a  _ weakness _ ; I only wish to keep Blair unafraid. That is not a  _ weakness _ .' 

He looked up at the time rotors. 

'Though it certainly made a mess of things today.' 

He turned to the Alcove to find his wool coat. 


	5. Episode Five

_ I hate this job _ , Ellen thought, walking along the freighter's gray corridors.  _ Maybe I should've just let him kill me; it'd be a quicker death than this miserable exista -  _

'Hello. I have a bit of cargo to drop off.' 

Ellen screamed and whirled around. 

'Don't  _ startle _ me like tha - wait - who are  _ you?! _ ' 

The woman smiled; her wavy auburn hair catching the light from the dim corridor lamps. 

'I'm the Rani;' she said, 'a.... _ science major _ \- on a ship, like this. And you're....Hastings, wasn't it?' 

Ellen stepped back a little and put a hand on her holster. 'How do you know - '

'And you want to get home, don't you? Well, Hastings, I can  _ take _ you home.'

Ellen stopped. 

'How do you know who I am?' 

'Oh, very simple,' Science Major Rani said, 'Edmond  _ Taft _ told me about you. You see, we work together.' 

Ellen shook her head. This wasn't good. 'Taft....he's trouble - you should stay away from him!'

'On the contrary,' she said. 'He's  _ helpful _ . And he can get you home, if you'll help me.' 

Ellen was about to cry. 'I....I can't  _ go _ home. It'd cause a paradox. The Master - he....he said - '

Science Major Rani tutted. 'Oh, don't you believe a  _ word _ the Master says. If you want to know who's trouble, it's him. He's a criminal on my planet, you see.' 

'Your.... _ planet? _ '

'Yes; we're both from Gallifrey. See? I'm a Time Lord; I know what I'm talking about.' 

'But he'll  _ kill me _ if he finds out!' Ellen shouted. 

'I won't let him. You see, we have a bit of a history, and I want revenge on him as much as you do.'

Ellen shook her head. 'I don't want reven - '

'Of  _ course _ you do - there's no reason to deny it, girl! After what he's done to you? Stranding you on a foreign planet? Keeping you from your best friend? Putting you at odds with the Monk? Why  _ wouldn't  _ you want revenge?' 

Ellen stared. It made a lot of sense. 'Well....I  _ guess _ that's true....' 

'So - will you help me?' 

Ellen frowned. No matter how much sense this woman was making, she was still a bit suspicious. 

'What with?' she asked, cautiously. 

'One of Taft's inventions needs to be stored in your hull. It will help you get home. And, if you do that, I'll take you on a trip in my TARDIS.' 

Ellen leapt forward. 

'Back to Earth!? To my family!?' Science Major Rani took a quick step back. 

'No. Things must be done in the proper order. The machine must work its wonders before I can take you home. And don't lunge at me like that!' 

Ellen's heart sank. She'd have to wait. 'Oh. Where's the invention, then?' 

She gestured to a large, terrarium-like box at her feet. 'Put it in the hold, then wait for me,' she said. Ellen bent down. 

'All _ right _ ....' She hesitated, then picked the box up and started walking towards the elevator. 

*****

Ellen looked up as she set the box down; she heard the sound of a TARDIS materialising. Soon, a set of metal doors appeared, and the Science Major emerged from them. 

'I'm ready,' Ellen said. 

Science Major Rani held the door for her. As soon as she was inside, a familiar voice said, 

'Miss Ellen! 'Tis good to see you again!' She looked up and saw Edmond Taft sitting in the Gallery, reading. She frowned. 

'Hello, Mr Taft,' she said. 

The time rotors started to rise and fall, and then they settled, and a bell chimed on the console. 

'Let's go.' The Science Major started for the door. 

'Wait - Rani - ' Ellen said 'before we go, have you got anything to eat? I'm famished.' She nodded. 

'I do.' She walked off, and Ellen looked up to see Edmond Taft smirking at her. 

'What?' she asked. 

'She is not much for words; be warned.'

Oh. Well if that was all, she was fine with that. Some people talked too much anyway. 

A bit later, Ellen frowned. 'She's taking quite a while.'

'You should be patient, Miss Ellen,' Taft said, just as the Science Major reappeared. She handed Ellen a muffin. 

'Oh,  _ thank  _ you!' Ellen exclaimed, downing it in only a few bites. 

The Science Major opened the door and beckoned Ellen out. She found herself in the central section of a space station; there was a sign on the far wall that said, 'Edwara Simone Post'. 

'I have a laboratory here,' the Science Major said. 

'It's  _ amazing _ .' Ellen looked around and shook her head. 'Can I see your lab?'

The Time Lord led her to a hut, in which Ellen saw a medium-sized front room, and a large lab with a control panel in the corner that looked rather burnt out. Still, it was impressive.

'Incredible!' Ellen exclaimed. 

'You will probably be back here soon enough, so it's good for you to see it.' 

'Thank you.' She frowned, realising this could be an opportunity to ask someone without getting yelled at by superiors about it. 'Do you have a spare power pack by any chance? My tonal pistol is out of charge.' 

The Science Major went to a cupboard and rummaged in it, withdrawing a squarish gun that Ellen instantly recognised. 

'This is above and beyond a tonal pistol,' she said, and handed it to her. 'You know how to use a staser, I gather?'

'Yeah!' Ellen stared at it. 'I had a bit of a crash course in staser handling.' 

'Good then. You can keep it. Come on; you need to go back now.'

Ellen's head jerked up. 'I do?' 

' _ Yes _ . Now back to the TARDIS.' 

Ellen sighed and followed her back. 'How am I going to get home, exactly?' she asked as they walked inside. 

'The timeline the Master is holding over your head to keep you dancing to his tune can be changed,' Science Major Rani explained. 'Push Earth's history along a slightly different track, and you can go home.'

'But won't that mess up the Universe?' 

The Science Major laughed. ' _ No! _ Not at  _ all! _ ' 

Ellen flushed. 'So everything he told me was a  _ lie!? _ He was going to kill me for a  _ lie!? _ ' 

'That's how he works, Hastings. He comes up with plenty of excuses to kill - generally saying some claptrap about how he's doing it " _ for the greater good _ ," or " _ for a reason _ ," or " _ because it's necessary in his grand plan _ ," or some other rot, but he's just a sadistic megalomaniac.' 

Ellen glared at the floor. How  _ dare _ Blair go off with him. How  _ dare  _ he send her off to this freighter. How  _ dare  _ Blair not stand up for her. How  _ dare _ them all. 

The TARDIS was landing. 'I'll be seeing you soon, Hastings,' the Rani said. The rotors settled, and she opened the door, then held out another muffin to Ellen. 

'Take that with you, if you can eat on duty,' she said. Ellen eagerly took it; she was hungrier than before. 

'Thank you.' She tried to ignore the pounding in her skull that was steadily growing by the minute and smiled. 

'You're welcome. Think about all I've said, Hastings.' 

'I will.'  _ I already am _ , she added, mentally. 

'And don't be afraid to do whatever is necessary to keep our project going. It's  _ important _ .' 

Ellen looked up, not understanding. 'Anything....but we don't want to stoop to their level, surely?' 

'We won't be,' the Science Major said. ' _ We _ have a  _ reason _ for doing it. And surely you want vengeance to be served?' 

'Yes....' 

'There you are, then. They started it. Now go on. Back to your job.' 

Ellen nodded tightly and marched out the door. She was going to put a stop to this once and for all; the Master wasn't going to keep her away from her family, and Blair wasn't going to  _ help _ him keep her away. 

She heard the TARDIS dematerialise behind her and didn't look back. She had things to do. 


	6. Episode Six

Blair stepped out into the console room in her dungarees, nervous, but ready for what lay ahead; what she knew she had to do. She walked over to the alcove and sat for a while, watching the Master work the controls, then he beckoned her over.

'Here is a rough map of the building we are in; it is not entirely accurate; there seems to be something blocking the TARDIS' scans, but we know that the Rani's TARDIS is over here, and the Taft Machine is over here. We are here.' He pointed all of this out, and Blair nodded. 

'Okay. So we go down this passageway?' 

'Yes.' 

'Alright. Let's go.' 

The Master handed her a staser, which she pocketed, and she reached for the door switch. She felt the Master watching her and stopped, looking up at him. His eyes were filled with more fear than Blair could remember ever having seen in him. 

'Blair....I do not think you should go....the Rani is ruthless....' 

Blair raised an eyebrow. 

'And Taft wasn't?' she asked. 'The Plutosaurs weren't? Remember that I've had my finger shrunk, I've been shot by my former best friend, I've been time-distorted or whatever, and I've rescued you from certain death. Ruthless Time Lord Mad Scientist, you say?' 

The Master sighed and looked at the controls. 'You need looking after, Master,' Blair continued. 'I'm not letting you - ' 

She froze, realising what she'd almost said. Now the Master turned and raised an eyebrow at her. 

'You are not letting me....what?' 

Blair fumbled for words. 'Er....I'm not letting you get almost-killed by Ellen again.' The Master frowned. 

'That is what you were going to say?' 

'Er.... _ nooo _ ....but what I was going to say was.... _ dumb _ .' 

'"Dumb"?'

'Er....yeah.'

'Hm.' At least he didn't seem as worried now. 

The Master turned to the scanner, then looked sidelong at Blair, then back at the scanner. He sighed. 

'I suppose you may come, then. But be careful, Blair. And....' 

He turned back to her with a searching look.

'....if there is something you think you should tell me, then by all means do....' 

He raised an eyebrow again and Blair caught her breath. How would he react when she did it? She blushed. 

'Thank you,' she managed to say. The Master nodded, then flipped the door switch, and silently, they walked out. 

*****

The map was completely inaccurate about the passageway; it had failed to mention that there was a fork. The Master frowned. 

'We should choose the righthand one first,' he said. 

'No - let's split up,' Blair said. 'I'll go down the left one, and you go down the right.'

The Master looked at her in shock. 'No - Blair! That is out of the question! Do you not remember how dangerous this entire situation is?' 

'I have a  _ staser _ ,' Blair said, grinning. 'I can handle  _ anyone _ .' 

He tightened his grip on her hand, but she shook it off and walked away down the righthand passage. He started after her, then stopped and sighed. 

'She is competent,' he murmured. 'I should not fret about her.' 

He stared down the passageway, uncertain as to whether he should follow. Then he sighed again and turned to the left one. 

*****

Blair heard a footstep behind her and smiled. The Master really was stubborn; perhaps she  _ shouldn't _ be worried about him being ruthless in stopping her. She turned. 

And saw Edmond Taft. 

Her staser was out in an instant and pointed straight at him. He grinned. 

'Miss Blair Kenneth! What a surprise! Are you here for a rematch of our duel?'  

'Miss  _ Sanders _ to you,' she growled. 'Don't you come near me!' He laughed again. 

'You still have a temper, I see.' He took a step forward, and Blair's finger tightened on the trigger. 

'Not another step!' she whispered. 'I don't like shooting these things, but I  _ will _ if you come any closer.' 

He dove forward and tackled Blair to the floor; Blair fired, but her hand was knocked, and she realised she'd hit herself with the blast just as she blacked out.

*****

Blair screamed and opened her eyes. She tried to lunge for Taft, but was held back by an incredible force. Looking down, she couldn't see anything restraining her, and her heart sped up.

' _ WHAT'VE YOU DONE!?!?! _ ' she yelled. Taft grinned. 

'I've put you in the way of my machine. Now the Master won't be able to get to it - you will be the  _ perfect _ barrier in that narrow corridor! And you'll never get out of what I've put you in either, so it's no use trying. Goodbye.' 

He walked off. 

Blair couldn't see Taft straight; he looked ridiculously far away. Her lungs constricted, and she felt herself getting faint. Scrambling for control, she took a shaky breath, then a deeper one, then a deeper one than that and squeezed her eyes shut.

'I'm in his way I'm in his way what's he going to do....' Her worst fears were coming true, and her mind was racing. She was - quite literally - in the Master's way. She opened her eyes. 

'What's he going to  _ do.... _ ' 

*****

She didn't know how long she was trapped in a world of panic and terror before the Master walked in the room, his worried expression vanishing when he saw her. 

'Blair!' he exclaimed. 'At  _ last! _ ' Then his eyes fell on the Taft Machine behind her. Blair winced. His eyes widened. 

'You have found it.... Oh,  _ wonderful _ , Blair!' He strode forward. 

'You can't get to it,' Blair whimpered. 

The Master frowned. 'What do you mean I cannot - of course I can, Blair!' She shook her head. Frowning, he tried to move past her - not roughly - and he raised an eyebrow when she didn't move. 

'Blair, I cannot comprehend why you are being so stubborn, but you must move out of the way  _ now _ ; I must retrieve the Taft Machine. That is the whole point of what we have been doing, is it not?' 

Blair could feel herself about to burst into tears, and this time, she didn't care. 

'I  _ can't _ , Master - I'm so  _ sorry! _ ' 

His eyebrows rose. Blair couldn't figure out  _ why  _ it was so hard to tell him what Taft had done to her, but she forced herself to shout, 

'I'm  _ stuck! _ I can't  _ move! _ Edmond Taft dragged me here and somehow trapped me here - he said I was the perfect barrier! I don't know what he did - but I can't  _ move! _ ' 

The Master's worried expression instantly returned. He tried to take Blair's hand, but was pushed back by something. He frowned, closed his eyes, then slowly reached out and clasped his hand over hers. Blair looked up at him, and he gave her a faint smile. It didn't reassure her. 

'I think this is one scrape I can't get out of,' she whispered. 

'It most certainly is a predicament.' He stared intently into her eyes, and Blair felt the faintest feeling of starting to fall asleep; a blissful feeling of gently being made oblivious to all the horror around her.... 

An agonising jabbing in her mind jolted her awake, and she gasped. The Master was wincing. 

'No use....I was going to attempt hypnosis to free you, but it will not work.' His voice was pained. 

'I don't get how hypnosis would help!' she gasped. The Master studied her. 

'Can you move at all?' he asked. 'How can you speak?'

'I can move my head, but that's it,' she said. He studied her for a moment more, then released her hand and backed away, looking right at her face. 

'Any ideas yet?' she whispered. 

He drew the TCE. 

Blair thought her heart had stopped. 

'No....no....you can't be serious....you're gonna kill me to get past....' She was babbling again; she didn't care.

'Blair, look at me,' the Master said, his voice completely empty of emotion. 

'DON'T YOU  _ DARE _ HYPNOTISE ME!!!' Blair screamed. 

' _ BLAIR! _ ' 

She fell silent. 

'I cannot hypnotise you right now,' the Master said, still completely emotionless. 'It is impossible, if you will recall. I want you to look at me and see I am telling the truth.' 

With a shuddering breath, she looked at him. She didn't see any honesty in his expression, just cold, calculating ruthlessness. She gulped.

'Wh....what is....it....' 

'You must trust me, Blair,' he said crisply. 'I promise you that no matter how this will look, I am not going to kill you. Do you trust me, Blair?' 

Was he joking? 'No,' she said. 

'I wish I could reassure you more directly; telepathically; but I cannot. I cannot even explain, or this will not work. I am very sorry, but you will have to take me at my word.'

Could she, though?  She looked at him, and saw only a person who was once her friend, but was now cold; hard; about to do what she'd thought unthinkable. She remembered the feeling of her finger being hit with the TCE blast when she'd jumped on Ellen. Was she really going to die like  _ that _ \- and at the hands of someone she'd thought was her friend? 

Was he her friend? 

Maybe she  _ should _ take him at his word; at least if she was going to die, she'd go out with her last thoughts being ones of the person she'd come to think the world of; more than anyone else ever. 

'I....o....okay.'

'Very well. Now, I need you to keep your head perfectly still, no matter what happens. If you so much as wince, you will die. I understand it is instinct, but you must stay completely still. No recoiling. Do you understand me?'

'I....y....yes.' 

'Not a fraction of a hair's breadth,' he said. 

'I understand.' 

'Good. Now....' His voice was still completely unfeeling. He concentrated, carefully focusing the TCE on a spot right between her eyes. 

And that's when she heard it. 

She didn't know why he didn't have his mental defenses up, but she could hear his thoughts, loud and clear. 

_ I need to aim just so.... It will be quicker for her that way.... She'll hardly feel a thing.... _

He switched on the TCE. 

'Mnnhhh....' Blair's whimpering was incoherent by now. 

'Steady, Blair,' the Master said, not taking his eyes off his target. She gulped. 

'You better not be lying, Master,' she managed, ''cos I can't see some brilliant scheme right now; all I see is me getting in the way of your plans and you aiming an instrument of excruciating death right at my face.' 

'Then do not look at the TCE, Blair; look at me.' His thumb hovered over the firing button.

Well, at least she could go out in denial. 

She looked up at him. 

He pressed the button. 


	7. Episode Seven

The blinding flash shattered 

the paper-thin device in front of her face 

she could 

barely keep still the beam vanished 

she was stumbling 

forward

the Master 

caught 

her - 

*****

She screamed, and then sobbed, and then both screamed _and_ sobbed into him as he held her tight. ' _Sh-sh-shhh hush....shh_.... _hush_ _Blair_....' His voice was a whisper. 'I was never going to kill you....I am so sorry.... _Shhh_.... It's all over....you are going to be fine....dear Blair....' 

Through her storm of terror and relief, she could hear feet running towards them. She felt the Master turn, and she looked up quickly, sensing danger. Edmond Taft stared back at them. 

'You could  _ not  _ have released her!' he cried. 

The Master fired the TCE at him in one quick blast. 

Taft screamed and fell to the floor, half his size. 

'I  _ warned  _ you that if you came near her again you would  _ suffer! _ ' the Master shouted. ' _ That  _ was for all the times you have attacked Blair! And  _ THIS! _ ' 

He fired the TCE in another quick blast. Taft screamed again; a quarter of his size.

' _ THAT _ was for paralysing her today! And  _ THIS _ is so you can never do it again! And I sincerely hope it is not  _ quick! _ ' 

He fired again, longer; Taft's scream rose to a squeak -

\- then all was silent. 

Blair stared at what was left of Edmond Taft. 'You....you killed him....and he was alive....and now he's dead....and....' Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a horrified expression cross the Master's face. 

'In front of you...' he breathed, just as Blair's knees gave way. 

The Master held her up. She couldn't breathe....couldn't see....there was a horrible ringing in her ears....

'Blair -  _ steady now _ ....' The Master's cool fingertips against her forehead brought her to her senses, and she felt a telepathic wave of calm wash over her. ' _ Breathe _ ,' he was saying. 'Breathe.' She tried her best. 'There; that is good. Be calm. Be.... _ calm. There _ .' 

She  _ could _ breathe again, and she felt steadier. She opened her eyes and looked up at the Master; by the look on his face, she knew she didn't need to say anything. 

'Matter at hand,' he said. 'We can discuss this later.' 

'We  _ better _ .' Blair's voice trembled. He nodded. 

'We shall. We must stop the Rani first.' He looked towards the machine. 'Can you stand on your own?'

'Yes.' 

Very carefully, he released her, and as he walked towards the passageway where the machine was, he gave the shattered remains of whatever had been in front of Blair a rather malicious kick. She followed him over, and they stared at the Taft Machine in silence. 

Something fizzed behind them, and they turned, but Blair knew more or less what they'd see. Just as she'd thought, Ellen was standing behind them, holding a staser. She pointed it steadily at the Master. 

'If you move towards it, I'll shoot you,' she said, 'and it's not on stun setting. Blair, if  _ you _ try anything, I'll shoot him as well.' The Master stepped in front of Blair. She heard Ellen step backwards.

'You do realise what the Rani has done to you, do you not?' the Master said. 

'Shut up!' Ellen hissed. 

'She has infected you, just as she did Blair.' 

'I said shut up....' she trailed off. Blair looked around the Master and saw her hands were shaking. 'What do you mean "infected"?' 

The Rani stepped into the room. 

'He means I've made you telepathic, Hastings,' she said. 'How else could you power Taft's machine?' She was looking in disgust at the miniaturised remains of Edmond Taft. 

Ellen whirled around. The Master swiftly switched the TCE back on and Blair gasped. 

'Master -  _ NO! _ ' she cried, and grabbed his arm. 'Don't kill Ellen -  _ please! _ ' 

He looked at Blair. She stared at him, wanting to beg him not to do it, but she couldn't think of a logical enough argument.

'Do you realise what they will  _ do _ if they are not stopped, Blair?' he said. 'I  _ cannot _ allow this to happen!' 

The Rani laughed. 'As I said. Your one weakness. You've never killed anything sentient in front of her, have you?' 

Blair glared at her. 'For your information,  _ Rani _ , or  _ Ushas _ , or  _ Science Major _ , or whatever your name du jour is, he just killed Edmond Taft in front of me, so  _ leave him alone! _ ' She looked at Ellen, who was shaking. 'Ellen.  _ Please _ . Put the staser down. Don't listen to her; whatever she's up to, it  _ doesn't  _ involve taking you home, if that's what you're after.' 

'You don't know anything!' Ellen snapped. Blair couldn't believe her ears.

' _ Look _ at her, Ellen!' she shouted. 'You don't  _ have  _ to be a telepath to figure it out! She just  _ admitted  _ she's been doing stuff to you that you didn't know about! Do you really think she's on your side?!' 

Ellen turned. 

'What do you mean you've made me telepathic?' she asked, faltering. 

'Well....only a telepath can power the machine, and  _ I'm  _ certainly not going to do it! So I put a virus in your food to restructure your brain. And I created the wireless link between you and the machine while you were asleep.' 

Ellen shoved the staser in the Rani's face. The Rani only smiled, and drew a gun of her own, that was most definitely not a staser. 

'Oh, yes, and I have a gun left over from my last project, and it's loaded with bolts of poison, so I'd watch your step,' she said. 

'What  _ else _ have you done to me?' Ellen hissed. 

'Well, you just held Blair in a psionic barrier for a while, via the machine,' the Rani said. 'That is, until her friend destroyed the transmitter.' 

_ The transmitter _ .... Blair thought.  _ The invisible transmitter on the Alari's planet.... _ She looked up at the Master, and he nodded. She couldn't believe it. 

'It was supposed to suppress any thoughts of anyone trying to resist it,' the Rani was saying, 'but either his mind was too strong for it, or he found a loophole. Which was it, Koschei?' 

The Master frowned. ' _ Master _ , if you don't mind.' 

'I  _ do _ mind,  _ Koschei _ .' 

'Very well. A little bit of both, actually. I telepathically tricked the machine into thinking I was going to kill Blair, and also managed to overpower it long enough to take Blair's hand for a minute. So much for your mind control,  _ Ushas _ .' 

_ So that's why I heard all his thoughts about him aiming to kill me.  _ Blair felt her heart swell. He really  _ hadn't _ ever meant to kill her; it  _ was _ true. 

'I suppose you want to use the machine to control your subjects on Miasimia Goria?' the Master asked. The Rani scowled. 

'Nothing of the sort! That's more  _ your _ department! No; if I combine the telepathy virus with Taft's Machine, I can create a large network of telepathically transmitted information - a super databank! It will be the Universe's largest repository of information - and all  _ mine  _ to have!' 

'And what about taking me home!?' Ellen snapped. Everyone looked at her. The Rani laughed. 

'I  _ lied _ , Hastings - are you really so stupid as to not have figured that out yet?' 

'Why, you - '

'So let me get this straight,' Blair cut in. She needed to know. 'If a telepath is in control of the Taft Machine, it can transmit mental information.' 

'Yes,' the Rani said. 

'And this transmission can be used to control people.' 

'Yes. You actually  _ are  _ rather bright, Kenneth; I think I underestimated you. Maybe I'll shoot Hastings and link  _ you _ to the machine after all.' 

'I had a feeling that's what it did,' Blair only said. She felt the Master tense beside her.

'If you even  _ attempt _ to carry out what you just suggested, Ushas,' he growled, 'I shall demonstrate to your scientific mind what the experience of being compressed to an eighth of your size is like.' 

'SHUT UP - JUST EVERYONE WILL YOU  _ SHUT! UP! _ ' 

Everyone looked at Ellen again. Dropping the staser, she raised her hands and kicked it towards the Master. 

'Do whatever you have to do to me; I don't care anymore. I just know I'm not gonna be part of some stupid mental encyclopedia.' 

' _ DUCK! _ ' Blair screamed, and everyone did. A bolt flew from the Rani's gun, hit the wall, and dropped to the floor. Ellen burst into laughter. 

'You  _ missed _ , Rani!' She suddenly turned and stared at her intently, then turned back and smirked. 

'She only had that one bolt left!' She took a step towards Blair and the Master. 'I just coaxed it from her mind - I - '

She was cut off as another bolt hit her, and she crumpled to the floor. 

Blair screamed and dove forward. She grabbed Ellen's hand. 

'Ellen - no....' 

Ellen looked up at Blair, struggling to breathe. 

'Blair....I'm sorry....' Blair shook her head; this couldn't be happening.

'No - Ellen - I forgive you - just  _ please _ hold on - '

'I....can't,' Ellen whispered. Blair squeezed her hand tighter. 'I....just wanted to go....home.... Blair....' 

She trailed off, then went still. 

Blair frowned and leaned over her. 'Ellen....?'  _ Please no _ .... She shook her. Ellen did not stir. 

Blair put her face in her hands and sobbed. 

After a meaningless amount of time, which Blair didn't care to even comprehend, she looked up and saw the Rani backed up against the left wall, the Master covering her with Ellen's staser. 

'She forgot she only had  _ two  _ bolts, Blair,' the Master said evenly, 'Which means - ' 

There was a forceful ringing sound, and the Rani dropped to the floor. Blair only stared. The Master came over and put a hand on her shoulder. 

'She is only stunned,' he said quietly. 'You were right. There has been enough death today.' 

Blair wanted to sob again as the Master helped her to her feet. She looked forlornly at Ellen. 

'Come,' the Master said. 'The Taft Machine.' 

It was like a lightning bolt had hit her. In a sudden burst of energy, she dashed over to the machine, glanced into the side opening, and reached in. 

'This looks important....' she said. She grasped hold of the piece of circuitry. 

The Master dashed forward. 'Blair - no - '

She yanked on the circuit. It snapped, and the dead end of the passageway lit up with blue light as a great arc of electricity hissed out of the machine and connected with Blair. She shrieked and was thrown back. The Master caught her. 

'Blair - what have you  _ done?! _ ' he cried. Blair struggled against not only the surge of pain, but the surge of mental energy from touching the machine when its power surged.

'I - didn't - expect that - ' she gasped. The Master reached for her wrist; feeling for her pulse, then relaxed. 

'Oh, Blair - you gave me such a fright -  _ never do such a foolish thing again! _ ' 

'Everything's swimming....' Blair mumbled. Everything was growing big purple spots and sounding distant, and she didn't know how much longer she could hold out. 

'I can imagine. What possessed you to reach inside it in the first place?!' 

'I'll explain....later - ' 

Everything went black again.

*****

The Master braced himself as Blair slumped against him. What on Gallifrey had she been thinking? She could have been  _ killed _ with that amount of energy! He sighed, and looked at the sputtering machine, then back at Blair, then back at the machine; his goal; the fruition of his plan. 

'I cannot carry  _ both _ ....' he murmured. 

He lifted Blair and walked back towards where the TARDIS was. 

*****

Once he was inside the TARDIS, he carefully laid Blair on the settee in the Alcove, then strode over to the console and programmed the controls with precision. He pulled the demat lever, and then the TARDIS was landing. 

The Master flicked the door switch and stepped outside, walking past the Rani, who was groaning and shaking her head, still on the floor. He unplugged the Taft Machine, lifted it, and walked back to the TARDIS door. He paused, and gave the Rani a disdainful look. 

'No luck this time, Ushas. Good day.'

He strode into the ship. 

Inside, he set the machine down and closed the door. Once the ship was dematerialised, he came back to the machine and knelt down to examine it. 

'At  _ last! _ ' He laughed. 'The proper means to the proper end!' 

Then he saw something, and his eyes widened. Gingerly, he reached in and pulled out the circuit Blair must have pulled. 

'It is cracked and burnt out beyond repair....' he breathed. 'And without being able to access the blueprints that were lost on Home, I cannot make another.... Oh,  _ why _ did I destroy the Alari's copy?!' 

The time rotors made a sound, and he glared up at them. 'Laugh if you wish. It will do no good.' 

He stood, glared down at the machine, and gave it a sharp kick. Then he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and sighed. 

'Other opportunities will come along....I must remember that. Chancellor Goth, for example.' He opened his eyes and looked at the machine, still angry. Then Blair, unconscious in the Alcove, caught his eye, and he slowly smiled. 

'At least Blair survived the shock, even if the circuits did not,' he said. He thought for a moment, then went back over to the console and programmed the controls. 

'And I know just the place.'

*****

Blair groaned. Her head - no; her whole body - ached like never before. She blinked, and opened her eyes. 

The Master was sitting in front of her. She smiled, glad to see he was fine, and he smiled back. 

'I have brought you to the Eye of Orion,' he said. 'You will like it.' 

He stood, and slowly helped her up. It  _ hurt _ , but she knew she had to move. She leaned against him as he led her out the door and into a grassy, twilit plain. They walked for a few feet, and then she gasped. 

'I need to sit.' 

'Very well.' 

He helped her to the ground, then sat next to her. She looked around, taking in the purple and red of the sunset - not that they were the only colours - the green hills in the distance; and the vast plain that led up to them. It was still; quiet; except for the sounds of alien birds whistling nearby. 

'It's so.... _ peaceful _ ,' she breathed. 

'Indeed. It is considered to be among the most tranquil places in the Universe.' 

'Thank you for bringing me here.'  

'Most welcome.' 

Blair watched the sun gradually sink for a while, lost in thought. Eventually, she wondered how she should bring all this up, and decided that perhaps being direct was the best way. She sighed. 

'There's an elephant in the room, Master,' she said. He looked at her. 

'And what of this proverbial "elephant"?' 

Blair took a deep breath and sighed again. 'Okay, so I understand that you have different morals than I do. It's also quite obvious that you're not against killing anyone, even if they're sentient - or even human.' 

' _ I _ am not human, Blair,' he said quietly. She nodded. 

'I know you aren't.' 

There was a pause. 'So....?' the Master prompted. 

'So....I've accepted all this about you - your lack of qualms about bumping people off, I mean - as fact, but I've also figured out two  _ other _ things. The first thing is that there is a glaring exception to what I've just said.' 

'And what is that exception, Blair?' 

She looked at him, just as calm as he was.

'Me. You'd never hurt  _ me _ . You proved that today. You had the perfect opportunity to mow me down to get to the Taft Machine - in fact it would've been easier for you to just mow me down....but you didn't. You went out of your way to avoid that.' 

The Master nodded. 'That is correct.' There was another pause. 'And your second deduction is....?' 

'That "weakness" the Rani was talking about. Somehow, from something I said when she kidnapped me, she figured out that you had been holding back on killing people in front of me, and I think I know why.' The Master raised an eyebrow. 'You're always going on about how I'm an anomaly, and how if I was alone in the Universe, it could kill me. So you avoided frightening me 'cos you didn't want me to hate you.' 

The Master nodded. 'You are quite perceptive.' 

'You were worried what might happen if I found out, and didn't want to travel with you anymore. So that's the double-proof, really. Not only do you refuse to kill me, you actively go out of your way to try to stop me from  _ getting _ killed. So, I'm not scared of you, Master. I can't say I approve of you killing people, but I feel totally safe.' 

Relief washed over the Master's face, and Blair wondered how long he'd been worried about this. 

'I am very glad to hear it,' he said. She smiled at him. 

'I don't want you to hide things from me 'cos you think they'd make me hate you, Master. I couldn't hate you ever.' The Master gave her a very solemn look. 

'Thank you.'

'You're welcome.' She still looked at him and he held her gaze. She knew what she had to ask, but she didn't want to. 

But she had to. 

'You were going to kill Ellen back on the spaceport planet, weren't you,' she said, very calmly. 'That's why you sent me back to the TARDIS and told me not to watch on the monitor, and that's why she was always so scared of you.' 

The Master went a little pale as he looked back at her. He closed his eyes and said, 

'That is correct.' 

'I see.' Blair's heart ached at the thought of it; at the thought of Ellen, who used to be her friend and was now dead. If things had happened differently, it could've been the Master's fault. 'I still don't hate you,' she said. 'Like I said before, I could never hate you.' She sent out a small telepathic wave to him, one that was warm and full of love and completely true. The Master opened his eyes.

'Thank you,' he said. 

Blair smiled and looked down at the grass. She picked a blade of it and tried to make kazoo sounds on it, but gave up and threw it away. Maybe it only worked on Earth grass, anyway. Then she sighed. She knew she had to say this as well. 

'So....in the spirit of honesty, I have a bit of a confession to make. And I'm not scared to say it, only a little awkward.' 

She saw the Master raise an eyebrow. 'Go on,' he said. 

'Er....you see, when I had that mental shock the other day, it was 'cos I accidentally read your mind when you were daydreaming.' She looked at him. 'I figured out why you wanted the Taft Machine. Putting two-and-two together, it kinda added up to universal domination. The Rani's description of what it does all but confirmed it.' 

The Master didn't say anything for a moment, only studied Blair. Then, 

'I see.' 

'So....' Blair continued, 'when I reached inside the Machine, it was with full intention to break it. I know I succeeded, but great  _ Scott _ it hurt.' 

The Master's jaw dropped, and he stared at her. She looked at him, levelly; seriously. 

'I love you too much to let you try and take over the Universe, Master.'

He stared a second longer, then started laughing. He leaned over and wrapped her in a hug. She hugged him back. 

'You infuriating.... _ wonderful _ girl,' he said. Blair pulled away and smiled at him. 

'Thank you.' He smiled back at her. 

They turned and watched the sun sink a little lower, then Blair had a thought. 

'Where're we gonna go next? You know - now that I've singlehandedly toppled your scheme.' The Master smirked. 

'Now that is  _ not  _ fair....' 

Blair grinned. 

'I do not know,' he said. 'Where do you wish to go?' 

Blair thought about this. There were so many places; so many old friends to visit....but there was one thing she wanted most of all. 

'I want to see Le again,' she said. 'Can we?' 

The Master thought for a moment, then nodded. 'I do not see why not.' 

'Okay then. That's good.'

'We shall go. Once you gain your strength back, that is. I am fully aware that you received more than just an electrical shock from the Taft Machine.' Blair nodded, and looked up at the sky. 

'Good; I want to finish this sunset. Let's just watch it together for now. We have all the time in the Universe for adventures.' 

'Indeed,' the Master said. She put an arm around him, and after a moment, he did the same. 

And they watched the rest of the sunset together in silence. 

*****  
  
_The End...._  
  
_Until the next adventure...._


End file.
